Saturday, 16 July 2016

Obanikoro blasts EFCC - 'Release my wife now'

The Former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, on Friday told the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to resist the temptation of “persecuting” his wife, Moroophat, who was quizzed by the anti-graft agency on Thursday.

He called her “an innocent woman who has no dealings at all with any of the businesses that they are investigating and totally unaware of the alleged transactions.”
The self-exiled politician, who was reacting to media reports on his wife’s encounter with EFCC, said she suffers from high blood pressure and other heart ailments.

The ex-minister in a statement on Friday deplored the media reports which he branded as saddening.

He said: “We are saddened by the fact that the media was awash with false and conflicting information about the invitation of Senator Obanikoro’s wife.

“Ordinarily, we considered ignoring these concocted lies but for the sake of discerning and right thinking public, hence the need to straighten matters.

“First, Alhaja Moroophat has always been in the country managing her businesses as against the lie that she sneaked in last week from the United States.

“Second, No documents were found in her possession and the lie that she was arrested while trying to evacuate documents is a fabrication and can only survive in their warped and distorted minds. It should also be noted that the officials only came to invite her for questioning and as against the phrase that she was whisked away. Her driver actually drove her in her own car to the office of the DSS.

“Third, it was shamefully reported that the DSS were involved because there were so many armed policemen guiding her. This is another fabricated lie. Even when he was serving as minister, his family never enjoyed any police protection let alone after leaving office and as a woman who is above board in all her dealings, she does not need one.

“Finally, we are using this medium to call on the officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to resist from persecuting an innocent woman who has no dealings at all with any of the businesses that they are investigating and totally unaware of the alleged transactions.”